Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an image frame selector system for a photographic printing apparatus for selecting a particular simulated image frame from among a plurality of simulated image frames displayed on a monitor screen.
Description of the Related Art
The photographic printing apparatus makes prints by exposing developed image frames of photographic film on printing paper. The printing operation requires the steps of selecting image frames to be printed, correcting exposing conditions, and inputting the number of prints. In particular, the step of selecting image frames must be carried out frequently. For printing image frames of photographic film on printing paper, the photographic printing apparatus recognizes reference positions for the image frames of the photographic film with an optical sensor, for example. A transport mechanism sets the image frames to be printed to a printing opening disposed in an intermediate position on a film transport path. Then, a required number of each frame is printed on printing paper with exposing conditions corrected as necessary. Various methods of selecting image frames to be printed are known today.
Japanese Patent Laying-Open Publication H2-103027 discloses one such method. The technique disclosed therein provides selector keys corresponding in number and arrangement to image frames formed on piece film. When selecting image frames to be printed from the piece film, the selector keys are used for collation with the positions of the image frames to be selected. According to the conventional technique, the selector keys are arranged in a corresponding relationship to the image frames on the piece film. This enables an improved selecting efficiency where the positions on the piece film of the image frames to be selected are known. However, if the positions on the piece film of the image frames to be selected are uncertain, the operator must detach the piece film from a negative carrier once, in order to look closely at the piece film and confirm the positions.
Further, in a method employed for selecting image frames while visually confirming the image frames, a scanner disposed on a film transport path reads image frames, and resulting image signals are processed for display on a monitor. A cursor also displayed on the monitor is moved by operating cursor keys to select the simulated image frames. However, it is a troublesome operation for a skilled operator to move the cursor successively with the cursor keys. Where a pointing device such as a mouse or touch panel is used in place of the cursor keys, the selecting operation may be easy to an unskilled operator. However, a skilled operator attempting to select simulated image frames promptly would feel that a long time is taken to move from one simulated image frame to another, remote image frame. Moreover, it may be contrary to simplification and low cost of the photographic printing apparatus to provide a pointing device such as a mouse or touch panel besides input keys on a keyboard for operating the apparatus.
The prior art noted above may contribute to some extent toward a reduction of errors in selecting image frames. However, the operation to feed image frames successively by operating the keys remains troublesome. Certain image frames may require a manual operation to vary exposing conditions automatically set in time of simultaneous printing. Less than 10 such image frames may occur on a photographic film of 36 exposures. It is therefore undesirable from the viewpoint of operating efficiency to feed image frames by operating the keys even when no correction is required.